


A Soft Ending (My Love)

by archiveofourscone



Series: Beast Island [4]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, But just a little, Established Relationship, F/F, Final Battle, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Violence, after the Final Battle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 16:02:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20473736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/archiveofourscone/pseuds/archiveofourscone
Summary: The reports start flooding in, each spy within the Horde’s ranks confirming the same thing over and over again.Horde forces have started moving out of the Fright Zone and are setting up on the other side of the Whispering Woods, preparing for battle. Small factions have set up camp in Horde territories surrounding each kingdom, waiting for the signal. Even Hordak himself has been spotted among the soldiers at the Whispering Woods camp.The Rebellion knows that can only mean one thing.





	A Soft Ending (My Love)

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, everyone. The journey has been long (and this fic was a day later than I promised it. Who would've guessed readjusting to living in the US again and starting grad school would take up so much of my time? She asks sarcastically), and I've enjoyed every word of it. This fic starts before the final battle against the Horde and follows on through.
> 
> So, without further delay, onto the fic we go.
> 
> Enjoy!

Catra wakes up feeling warm, the sun coming through a crack in the blinds helping to warm up the nighttime air, and she snuggles back under the covers. Without looking at any sort of clock, she knows it’s early, way too early to be up, and yet Adora is already out of bed and pulling on training clothes.

Catra groans. “Why do you have to go train now?” she whines, though she would never admit it.

Through her barely-cracked lids Catra can see Adora smile. “You know,” Adora says softly, “You’re cute first thing in the morning.”

Catra flops onto her back and rolls her eyes, “You would be cuter here in bed with me.”

Adora sits on the edge of the bed and scratches just behind Catra’s ear, and she’s too tired to fight off the purr. “You could come train with me.”

“Or I could go jump off a cliff.”

Adora laughs, “It’s not torture.”

Catra starts tugging on Adora’s shirt to try and get her to stay. “You’ve been training too much lately.”

And she has. With Bright Moon preparing for a final battle against the Horde and the Princess Alliance meeting more and more often, Adora has essentially been training whenever she isn’t in a meeting. Catra tried getting Adora to take a break or focus on something else, but Adora refused ever time, repeating over and over again that if she doesn’t train, if she isn’t ready, then Hordak will win.

It’s the same argument that Catra knows Adora is about to use, so just as Adora opens her mouth to say it, Catra cuts her off. “If you keep training like this, you’re going to burn out, and then Hordak really is going to defeat you.”

“That’s blunt.”

“It’s honest.”

“I just—” Adora struggles for some way to explain it.

“I know,” Catra says, untangling her fingers from Adora’s shirt so that she can hold Adora’s hand.

Catra isn’t dumb. Catra knows the responsibilities Adora has as She-Ra. She knows how many people are depending on Adora to lead Bright Moon and the Rebellion to victory. She knows how many expectations sit on Adora’s shoulders and how much Adora worries about it.

“One more hour,” Catra tries to convince her, “And then I’ll let you go train.”

Adora looks like she wants to say no.

“Come on,” Catra tugs on Adora’s hand, “I was up ridiculously late last night helping C’yra with trade agreements, and all I want is one more quiet hour in bed with my girlfriend.”

Adora finally starts letting Catra pull her back to bed. “I think I can manage one more hour.”

“I’ll try not to make it too hard on you,” Catra jokes as she wraps an arm around Adora’s waist and settles herself against Adora’s chest.

Catra falls back into a half sleep while Adora’s runs her fingers through Catra’s hair.

~*~

Catra watches Adora train with the older Magicats from the side of the training grounds, her tail flicking with barely-contained frustration.

Adora started getting restless towards the end of their extra hour in bed, and Catra couldn’t convince her to take a longer break. She left the room before Catra even finished getting ready, and now she’s annoyed, because Adora is obviously exhausted with too much on her plate, but she refuses to take care of herself.

“You’re up early,” Catra hears from behind her, and she turns to see C’yra walking up to her, “I figured you would try to get some sleep.”

“I did,” Catra says, crossing her arms and trying her hardest to keep her tail from giving herself away.

C’yra notices. “You seem happy,” she says sarcastically.

“I’m fine.”

C’yra nods and hums, “Whatever you say, kitten.”

Catra turns from her mother to watch Adora again, and her annoyance just grows.

“She’s impressive,” C’yra muses, “Even without She-Ra, she can take down an enemy twice her size.”

Just as C’yra says it, Adora pins the Magicat she’s sparring with.

“She’s working herself to death,” Catra says, trying her hardest not to sound angry, because she isn’t. 

Or she shouldn’t be. 

“There’s a lot of pressure on her right now.”

“That doesn’t mean she should forget she’s a person and not a super soldier,” Catra digs her claws into her palm, trying so hard to stay calm and keep her voice level, even if she has to grit her teeth, “She’s either in a war meeting or training, and I’m not sure how much she even sleeps right now.”

“You’re worried about her.”

“Of course I am!” Catra snaps and immediately squeezes her eyes shut. She feels gentle fingers unravel her own so that her claws aren’t digging into her skin anymore, and when she opens her eyes, C’yra looks more worried than Catra has ever seen her.

“Go to the library, kitten,” she says gently, “Find something to read and take some time to yourself.”

“I need to get Adora to take a break.”

“You need to take care of yourself too,” C’yra lets Catra go, “The quiet will help.”

With on final look at Adora, Catra leaves the castle’s training grounds and heads to the library, and just walking in seems to take away some of her stress. The smell of books and the silence feel comforting in a way she never imagined it could, and she finds herself walking through the huge stacks, avoiding any rows where she can see scholars milling about.

She finds a quiet corner and sits down with a random book she pulls off of the shelf behind her, and she has a few moments of uninterrupted silence before her reading is interrupted by Felix coming towards her.

“I’m fine,” she says before he even has a chance to say anything.

“I was only going to ask how the book was so far,” he says, stopping beside her and scanning the shelves like he was only coming to her solitary corner to find something. Catra can tell it’s just an act, though, mostly because Felix rarely pulled anything from the Healing Sciences section.

“Did Mom ask you to come check on me?”

“No,” Felix pulls out a book and pretends to read the back, “She just mentioned that you were worrying over Adora.”

Catra sighs, “Is it really so wrong to be?”

Felix takes that as his cue to stop acting, so he puts the book back and sits on the floor beside her. “Of course it isn’t,” Felix assures her, “It just shows that you care, but you’re letting it take a lot out of you too.”

Catra sets her book aside and pulls her knees up to her chest, her tail wrapping around herself protectively.

“I barely see her anymore,” Catra whispers, “I mean, we see each other in meetings and in the few minutes before and after, but I thought getting her to come to Half Moon would mean she would actually take some time away from it all.”

“Have you told her how much you miss her?”

Catra pauses before saying a soft, “No.”

“You could try.”

“I’m not adding guilt onto the extreme pile of responsibilities Adora feels like she has to handle alone.”

“Then tell her she doesn’t have to handle them alone,” Felix says, getting up from the floor, “Now come on, I know you’re young, but I’m not, and I’d rather sit at a table.”

Catra grabs her book and follows, thinking over Felix’s words.

~*~

Catra sees Adora at lunch, and she barely gets a moment to say anything to her, let alone tell Adora that she misses her, before Adora gives her a quick kiss and says that she has to get back to Bright Moon for meetings with the royal guards.

Catra can't even say goodbye before Adora runs off to Swift Wind.

~*~

Catra is just walking out of a meeting with some of Bright Moon’s higher ranking soldiers when Glimmer appears in front of her in a burst of light and sparkles, grabs onto her, and teleports them away.

Catra rips her arm from Glimmer’s grip when they get to wherever she teleported them. “Sparkles, what the—”

“Adora collapsed,” Glimmer cuts her off.

“What?” Catra starts to feel frantic, “What happened?”

“She was sparring with a few soldiers,” Glimmer explains, “Apparently she fainted mid-spar.”

Catra looks around them and notices that they’re right in front of the infirmary door.

“You can go in,” Glimmer says before Catra can ask, “I’m going to go find Bow.”

And then Glimmer is gone in a burst of glitter.

The infirmary is quiet when Catra walks in, and finding Adora is easy, because she’s in the only bed occupied, a healer standing over her. The healer, one of the fauns who live in the villages surrounding Bright Moon’s castle, smiles at her.

“She’s fine,” he tells Catra, “All she needs is rest.”

“She hasn’t been getting a lot of that lately.”

“That’s why she collapsed,” he explains, “Without enough rest, her current overly-rigorous schedule just became too much for her, even with She-Ra’s strength.”

Catra nods, and the healer takes that as his cue to leave, and Catra is thankful as she sits on the edge of the infirmary bed and grabs onto Adora’s hand. She hears Glimmer and Bow come in, both of them asking the healer questions before sitting down in seats on either side of the bed.

“How are we supposed to get her to actually take a break?” Bow asks quietly so that he doesn’t wake Adora up.

“She’s going to fight any attempts we make,” Glimmer says, and Catra fights rolling her eyes and giving a sarcastic, _“No shit.”_

“How’d did inviting her to Half Moon work?” Bow asks Catra.

“She ended up spending most of the day training with the other warriors,” Catra says, “Every time I suggested taking a break and doing something else, she fought it.”

“We could try Mystacor,” Glimmer suggests.

“That didn’t work very well the first time,” Bow reminds her.

“Well yeah, but this time there’s no Shadow Weaver,” Glimmer says, and Catra feels just the slightest twinge at the name, even months after Shadow Weaver's death, “There won't be anyone to mess with her head, and she can actually relax.”

"Yeah," Bow draws out, his way of saying no, before politely saying, "Maybe we should think of something else."

They discuss a few other options, anything that might possibly get Adora to just slow down, but nothing seems to be good enough to work, and Catra is about to suggest tying her to a bed when Adora starts to stir, her hand squeezing Catra's.

Adora groans and tries to push herself up, and without thinking, Catra pushes her right back down and keeps pressure on her shoulder.

Bow gets up quickly and puts a gently hand on Adora’s other shoulder. “Take it easy,” he says gently, but Catra hears the littlest bit of force in his tone.

“I’m fine,” Adora argues but her voice is weak and groggy, and Catra feels her push up against her hand again, but Adora isn’t strong enough at that moment.

The fact that that was even true worries Catra.

“Adora,” Glimmer stands up and hovers a hand over Adora’s arm.

“I’m _fine_,” Adora insists, and she still tries fighting Catra and Bow’s hold, but she’s unsuccessful.

“No, you’re not,” Catra says and pushes Adora down with just enough strength that Adora slumps into the bed. She knows Glimmer and Bow will sugarcoat everything and try and be gentle, but she won't.

She feels Adora move under her hand and almost growls.

“Stop fighting.”

“Let me up.”

“No.”

Catra notices Glimmer and Bow back away from them.

Adora tries to swipe at Catra’s wrist, but with the mix of waking up and the exhaustion that made her collapse in the first place, she barely moves Catra, and Catra lets go of Adora’s hand and shoulder to grab Adora’s wrists to stop her from fighting.

“Catra—” Adora says, and Catra knows that it’s supposed to sound like a warning, but Adora’s voice is barely there, and Catra can see the energy draining out of her quickly.

“Adora, stop,” Catra says softly, “You’re exhausted.”

“I need—” 

“To rest,” Catra cuts Adora off, “You collapsed while training and you need to rest.”

“But—”

Catra hisses unintentionally, all of the frustration that has been building up over weeks and weeks of this slipping out without her permission. “Are you trying to kill yourself?”

There are a few whispered words, soft footsteps, and the sound of a door opening and closing. Catra’s ear twitches just so, listening to Glimmer and Bow retreat out of the infirmary and she’s thankful, because she doesn’t know how much longer she can keep her feelings in, and she refuses to show any sort of vulnerability in front of them.

They’ll get their chance to get through to Adora after she’s done.

Adora hasn’t answered, and Catra frustration boils over.

“No, really,” she says, her voice dripping in anger and sarcasm, “I want to know, because at this rate, we might as well send Hordak a letter saying, ‘Congrats! You did it! She-Ra literally worked herself to death, so you’ve defeated her!’”

“Catra—” Adora says, her voice so small, but Catra can’t stop.

“I’ve tried everything,” Catra lets go of Adora’s wrists, refusing to accidentally dig her nails into Adora’s skin, “Glimmer and Bow have tried everything. Even Swift Wind has tried to get you to take a break, and nothing has worked. You keep training and going from meeting to meeting with no break, and I’m just expected to stand by and let you exhaust yourself because you’re She-Ra, and the Rebellion needs She-Ra.”

Catra takes a deep breath, and some of the anger dissipates.

“You’re She-Ra, but you’re Adora too, and I’m not sure how much more your body can take. I’m not sure how much more _I_ can take.”

Adora grabs Catra’s hand but Catra pulls away and stands up from the bed, putting some distance between her and Adora.

Because she knows that when it comes to Adora, she’ll crumble under even one sorry, no matter how ingenuine, and she’s allowed to be upset, especially when her girlfriend ignores her in favor of harming herself.

“Just,” Catra looks down and over to the door and anywhere that isn’t Adora, “Get some rest. Please.”

And then Catra leaves quickly, breezing by Glimmer and Bow waiting outside.

~*~

Catra sees Scorpia stroll through the trees, and she knows Scorpia knows exactly where she is. She knows Scorpia will whistle and pretend like she’s on a nice stroll through the Whispering Woods, and she knows that Scorpia will sit against the trunk of the tree that Catra always climbs up because it’s the tallest one she can find.

Scorpia leans her head against the bark and looks up. “Hey, Wildcat.”

“Hey,” Catra says back, her fingers running over the soft leaves that feel almost unreal, and Catra guesses it has to do with the magic within the woods.

Scorpia takes a moment before asking, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Catra thunks her head back against the trunk and looks past leaves to the pale blue sky. “I don’t even know what to say.”

“I could go get a blanket from the castle,” Scorpia says, and Catra looks down to see her smiling, “I know it’s not the uncomfortable scratchy blue blankets we know and love, but maybe the added softness will help force it out of you.”

Catra smiles back. Scorpia has been gone so long leading Bright Moon's soldiers in taking back small villages conquered by Horde forces, and she didn’t realize until now just how much she missed her best friend.

“I don’t think the blanket will be necessary, Scorp.”

Catra sees Scorpia light up, and she knows it’s the nickname. Catra used it once accidentally, and Scorpia had looked at her surprised. After Catra asked a confused, _“What?”_ Scorpia said, _“Nothing. It, just, it makes me feel like I’m actually your best friend,”_ so Catra has been trying her hardest to use the nickname more.

Because Scorpia is her best friend, and Catra can do this one thing that makes Scorpia feel appreciated, even if she does it with an eye roll.

Scorpia knows that Catra never means it anyways.

“So?” Scorpia asks, her head quirking just so.

“It’s just,” Catra pulls her legs to her chest and hugs them tightly, her tail wrapping around her.

She’s never been good with feelings. She’d rather forget they exist completely, but she knows that she needs to get better, she needs to be more open, if only with a select few, so she tries to voice her thoughts.

“Adora collapsed, and she’s fine, but not really,” Catra says quickly, her eyes closing so that she can’t see Scorpia watching her, “I can’t get her to rest, and she’s working herself to death, and I’m so worried because what if it’s something worse next time?”

“Have you talked to Adora about this?”

Catra rests her chin on her arms and remembers Felix asking the same thing just a week ago.

“Sort of,” Catra says quietly, “I just got so angry and frustrated when she woke up and tried getting out of bed, and I didn’t say anything correctly.”

Scorpia stands up and Catra watches her climb the few low, sturdy branches. She settles herself on one a few feet off the ground and makes herself comfortable before looking back up at Catra.

“From what I understand, explaining it in anger never really works.”

Catra groans, “I didn’t _mean_ to, but she kept insisting she was fine and that she needed to get up and I didn’t mean to snap, but I love her and I’m afraid that if she keeps going on like this, something is going to happen to her.”

Scorpia doesn’t say anything, and Catra notices an amused smile pulling at her lips.

“What?” Catra asks, her voice not nearly as harsh as she wants it to be.

“You love her, huh?”

Catra goes red. She didn’t mean to say that out loud and _definitely_ not to Scorpia. She had planned to never say it, to keep it to herself, because it wasn’t something new to her.

She has loved Adora since they were little kids, and she knows Adora knew that growing up, but they never said it. They showed it through small affections and teasing words and sharing their bunk, and that was always enough.

“No,” Catra says quickly, but Scorpia’s amused smile doesn’t go away, and Catra knows that Scorpia isn’t convinced, so she adds, “Shut up.”

“So, you haven’t told Adora?”

Catra’s ears flatten against her head, “I didn’t mean to tell _you_. Do you really think I’ve told Adora?”

“You might think about it.”

Catra knows that Scorpia is right, but she doesn’t really want to talk about it anymore, so instead, she stretches out so that she’s lying across the branch and says, “What have you been up to?”

“Oh!” Scorpia says excitedly, “Wildcat, taking back the villages is so much fun! None of the Horde soldiers expect to see me there, and by the time they realize who they’re up against, I’ve already taken the village back and—”

Catra lets Scorpia tell her every story she has, and she gives little hums to let Scorpia know she’s listening to every word.

By the time they head back to the castle, the sun is setting, painting the sky is oranges and reds and pinks, and Catra feels just the slightest bit better.

~*~

Adora finds Catra a few days later in Bright Moon’s library. Catra is in a back corner where she knows no one else goes, her usual table covered in books open to different pages and a notebook with haphazard notes scrawled into it.

Adora takes a moment at the end of the stacks to just watch Catra flip a few more pages, her tail swaying gently and her ears twitching just so, before quietly saying, “I thought you would’ve gone back to Half Moon by now.”

“Horde soldiers have been spotted along Half Moon’s northern border,” Catra says, not even looking up from her book, but Adora can tell that Catra has stopped reading, “I’ve had to sit in meetings trying to get Bright Moon to send soldiers just in case anything happens.”

“They haven’t said yes?”

Catra stops flipping through pages but she doesn’t look up. “There aren’t any soldiers to spare.”

Adora nods, but she doesn’t say anything. She doesn’t know _what_ to say. She can still see Catra leave the infirmary three days ago, still remembers how much it hurt that Catra wouldn’t look at her, and she knew what she wanted to say then.

She has no idea what to say now.

So, she just stands there, and Catra doesn’t move either.

After a few moments of silence, Catra asks, “Are you going to just awkwardly stay there, or can I get back to what I was doing?”

Adora takes a chance and asks, “Can I join you?”

Catra looks up, and Adora can’t quite read Catra’s expression. It looks kind of surprised but also apprehensive, and Adora isn’t sure she blames Catra for that.

“Don’t you need to train?” Catra asks, her voice on the edge of harsh.

“No, I, uh,” Adora doesn’t know what to do with her hands, so her fingers start to twist together, “I’ve been told I need to take a break.”

“You haven’t listened to that before.”

“I know,” Adora says softly, “But I didn’t realize how much I was hurting you before.”

Catra looks genuinely surprised now, like she never expected Adora to admit that so readily, and Adora wonders just how long she went without realizing how affected Catra was by her actions. 

“That’s not an apology,” Catra says, her voice losing any edge it had before.

“It wasn’t meant to be,” Adora says, “Can I sit?”

Catra puts down her pencil and slides over on the bench, and Adora takes that as an invitation to sit beside her, but she makes sure there’s space between them, remembering Catra pulling away from her in the infirmary.

“I’m so sorry, Catra,” Adora starts, and her fingers start to wring and twist again, usually so used to having something, someone, to hold onto, “I’m sorry that I hurt you. I know the training was too much, and we never saw each other, and I didn’t even think about it. All I could focus on was me, and I’m so sorry that I’m so selfish.”

“Hey,” Catra says softly, and she scoots closer, one hand resting on top of Adora’s and the other reaching up to cup Adora’s face, “You’re not selfish.”

“I am,” Adora insists, “I—”

“You’re not,” Catra cuts Adora off, “I know the expectations everyone puts on you. You’re She-Ra, and with the Horde edging towards their endgame, everyone expects you to lead the army and destroy Hordak for good, and I wasn’t angry because of that.” Catra starts running her thumb along Adora’s cheek, her tail coming up to wrap around Adora’s wrist like when they were kids, “I was angry, because you weren’t taking care of yourself. You never had a moment to slow down, and you _collapsed_, Adora.”

“I know,” Adora leans into the touch and closes her eyes.

She didn’t realize before how long it had been since her and Catra were this close, but now that Catra is here and being so affectionate, Adora doesn’t understand how she went without this.

“I missed you,” Adora whispers, unsure of what response she’ll get in return.

“I missed you too,” Catra whispers back, and Adora opens her eyes to see Catra giving her that soft little smile that she saves just for Adora.

“Do you forgive me?” Adora asks, her voice so small and afraid that Catra might say no.

“Will you actually take breaks so that you don't exhaust yourself?”

Adora shakes her head yes.

“Then yes,” Catra says, “I forgive you.”

Adora smiles and leans forward, pulling Catra into a soft, short kiss.

“When did you get so good at talking about your feelings?” Adora asks her when they pull apart.

Catra shrugs, “You get wrapped up in blankets often enough and you realize that just saying what you mean is an easier fate.”

Adora’s eyebrows push together in confusion, and Catra giggles quietly.

“Scorpia,” Catra says in explanation.

“Makes sense,” Adora says, “That bad?”

“You remember those Horde-issued blankets,” Catra jokingly shudders, “Being wrapped in one is a fate worse than death.”

“Maybe we can win by wrapping up every Horde soldier in their blankets,” Adora muses, clearing a small part of the table to she can rest her head on her arms, her body still exhausted even after being released from the infirmary.

Catra goes back to flipping through pages and taking notes, but her tail wraps around Adora’s thigh. “Using their own torture against them would be a sort of poetic justice.”

Adora hums her response and Catra looks over to see Adora slowly starting to fall asleep.

When Adora wakes up, her head is in Catra’s lap, Catra’s fingers running through her hair absentmindedly as Catra reads the book in front of her, and Adora goes back to sleep, a small smile on her lips.

_~*~_

The reports start flooding in, each spy within the Horde’s ranks confirming the same thing over and over again.

Horde forces have started moving out of the Fright Zone and are setting up on the other side of the Whispering Woods, preparing for battle.

Small factions have set up camp in Horde territories surrounding each kingdom, waiting for the signal.

Even Hordak himself has been spotted among the soldiers at the Whispering Woods camp.

The Rebellion knows that can only mean one thing.

They begin by evacuating any village in the Horde’s line of fire, each princess offering their kingdom as refugee camps. Catra spends days helping the villagers around Half Moon find beds, even giving up her own so that they can have somewhere safe to sleep. She knows Adora, Bow, and Glimmer are doing the same at Bright Moon, hundreds of villagers fleeing there in the hopes of finding solace.

Then, the Princess Alliance starts meeting more and more, discussing tactics and placement of princesses when the Horde finally makes their move. There are arguments for the princesses to stay and defend Bright Moon, arguments for each princess to return to protect their kingdoms, and, surprisingly it’s Catra who speaks up.

“The Princess Alliance is stronger together than apart,” she says, looking at everyone around the table, “We all need to be here.”

“What happens when the Horde camps surrounding our kingdoms attack?” Frosta asks angrily.

“Keep someone trusted in charge and hope that you’ve trained your armies well,” Catra says simply, and even though there’s more arguing after that, in the end, they agree with Catra, each deciding to stay and defend Bright Moon.

The message that the Horde plans to attack the next day is short, just one sentence, but it spurs nonstop movement from the Rebellion. Soldiers are moved around, some kept in Bright Moon and others sent to the other kingdoms in the Alliance, reinforcements start flooding, everyone offering their best fighters to the final battle.

When the Magicat reinforcements arrive, Catra notices C’yra and Felix among them, and she’s quick to argue.

“Half Moon needs their king and queen,” Catra says as the rest of the Magicats walk up to Bright Moon castle, ready to find their quarters and rest before the chaos.

“No,” C’yra says, “Half Moon needs for their queen and king to be right here fighting beside their princess.”

“What if something happens?”

“We do have an army, you know,” Felix says, his voice teasing, “They’ve been rearing for a battle since the Horde attacked after we resettled.”

“This isn’t funny,” Catra argues, “I know there aren’t enough warriors to send reinforcements here _and_ protect Half Moon.”

“Bright Moon soldiers showed up to assist our warriors,” C’yra starts to walk by Catra into the castle, “And everyone agreed that this is where Felix and I needed to be, not fighting the pathetic amount of Horde soldiers camped out right outside our kingdom.”

“It’s almost insulting,” Felix jokes as he follows C’yra, “It’s like they think we wouldn’t be a threat.”

“I’m still not okay with this,” Catra says as she follows them in.

“Good thing it isn’t your choice, kitten.” C’yra smirks at Catra over her shoulder, and she laughs a bit when Catra rolls her eyes in response.

Catra spends part of the day with her parents, filling them in on everything happening around Bright Moon and all of the preparations the Rebellion has undergone to hopefully ensure a win.

She only leaves when C’yra and Felix tell her to go and spend some time with her friends, claiming they want to meet with Angella before there’s no chance to.

Catra spends the rest of her day with Scorpia and Entrapta. They’re in Entrapta’s lab, Catra laid out on her back while Entrapta works on some wiring, and Scorpia fills the silence with stories and musings and ideas for things they can all do together once the Horde is defeated.

Catra can barely imagine what her life will be like without the Horde.

_If we even win,_ she thinks, refusing to say it out loud and possibly ruin Scorpia’s positive attitude.

When Catra gets back to her room, Adora is sat on her bed looking so small and scared.

“I’ve been with Bow and Glimmer all day, but I—” she pauses for just a second, “I want to spend the rest of my time alone with you.” 

It’s not late enough to go to sleep yet, but they are snuggled up in bed in minutes, Catra holding Adora against her tightly, and they’re quiet for a few moments, the sound of trees rustling filling the room though Catra’s open window.

“I’m scared,” Adora admits against the short fur of Catra’s throat, “What if I’m not enough? What if She-Ra isn’t enough?”

“You are,” Catra says without any hesitation, because she knows she’s right. She knows that even without She-Ra, Adora would be strong enough to take on Hordak.

“What is we lose?” Adora asks desperately, “What if it’s all my fault?”

Catra pulls away so that she can look Adora in the eyes as she says, “You are not alone out there. You’ve got the whole Princess Alliance backing you up, and even more importantly, you have me. You look out for me and I look out for you, right? Nothing really bad can happen as long as we have each other.”

Adora still looks afraid, but she smiles as Catra says her own words back to her. “You promise?” she asks, partly because it’s what comes next and partly because she needs the reassurance.

Catra smiles and thinks about how much these words hurt not so long ago.

Now, they’re just as comforting as they were back then.

“I promise,” Catra whispers and brushes a piece of Adora’s hair from her face before pulling Adora to her and kissing her.

This kiss feels so much different than all of their other ones. It’s hurried and hard, like they’re both afraid that this may be the last time they can be with one another like this. Catra tries not to think about how true that fact might be. She pushes away thoughts of Adora losing to Hordak, of something happening to her, and kisses Adora even harder, holding her as close as possible and refusing to think about anything else.

Right now, it’s just Catra and Adora.

There are no final battles, no bleak possibilities, no threats.

There are only desperate kisses, wandering hands, and the soft rustling of leaves.

Later, as the moon rise on Etheria's starless sky, Adora and Catra fall asleep tangled up in one another, Adora running her fingers over Catra’s spine and Catra’s soft purring filling the deep silence of the room.

~*~

The final battle doesn’t happen like Catra expects it to. She expects Hordak to keep fighting, even when it’s obvious the Rebellion has the clear advantage. She expects Adora to lead the charge as She-Ra, and Catra expects to always be at her side, keeping her safe against Horde soldiers and high-tech bots.

She knows she’s going to lose people, but she can’t think of that mid-fight, focusing instead on her claws sinking into metal and ripping as she destroys bot after bot alongside the other Magicats.

She doesn’t expect to watch C’yra go down, though, but she doesn’t think before running over to her, fending off anyone attempting to finish the Magicat queen off until help arrives.

The rest of the battle is a blur after a few healers pull C’yra off the field and Catra is left watching them go, feeling more helpless than she’s felt in a long time. Catra remembers rejoining the fight. She remembers keeping Adora safe as she faces off against Hordak, his villainous speech barely audible over the sound of swords clashing, blasters exploding, and robots whirring.

She remembers glowing orange as the Princess Alliance becomes a united force against the Horde’s army.

And she remembers the moment Hordak falls, She-Ra’s sword held under his chin, and his begrudging surrender.

It all seems to go by in a blur even though the battle takes almost a full day, and Catra remembers it all, but after Hordak is defeated, after the Horde soldiers lay down their arms, after She-Ra shifts back into Adora, war-beaten but altogether okay, Catra runs from the field up to the tents set up right outside Bright Moon castle.

Healers rush around, trying their hardest to help everyone, and none of them even notice Catra looking around frantically. One eyes Catra’s wounds, the cut above her brow dripping blood down her face and the deep gashes along her arms and sides, but she doesn’t say anything. She deems Catra's wounds less serious than anyone around her and moves on to another patient.

C’yra is situated in a back corner, a healer working over her, and Catra can see, even from the entrance, that it’s bad. The wounds are still bleeding despite having happened a few hours before, and the healer has a worried look on his face, like he isn’t sure how to stop it.

“Catra?”

Catra feels a soft hand on her shoulder, and she still jumps, still turns with the claws up, ready to fight, but it’s only Felix looking bruised and beaten.

“She’s—” Catra can’t get it out. She can’t say the words, can’t think of the possibility that C’yra might—

“She’s been through worse,” Felix says, opening his arms up to Catra, and she hugs him and holds tight.

She just got her parents back, and she can't help being afraid that she might lose one of them now.

Felix whispers little reassurances to Catra, but nothing seems to help. She just keeps seeing C’yra falling in battle. All she can see is the blood spilling from the deep gash, and Catra squeezes her eyes shut, hoping that she can fight the images off.

She doesn’t know how long it is before Adora comes to the healers’ tent, She-Ra’s sword still glowing from the battle.

Adora comes over to her before anyone else, and Catra thinks that she should tell Adora to go. She needs to go help the healers, but Catra can’t say it. She just grabs onto Adora and holds tight, fighting off the tears in her eyes.

Adora doesn’t say anything. She just holds Catra until the healer comes over and gives them an update.

The wound was deep, and it took a lot of healing even to close it up, and that wasn't the only damage her body sustained from the fight.

C’yra is stable, but she probably won’t wake up for a while.

Her heart is still beating. She’s still breathing.

_She’s alive,_ Catra keeps repeating to herself, even as the healer leaves them to help others, and she doesn’t know what to do.

She wants to stay and wait for C’yra to wake up, but she knows she’s needed around the castle to help in the aftermath.

“Go,” Felix says softly, like he can read Catra’s mind, “I’ll stay with her, and I’ll have someone come get you if she wakes up, okay?”

Catra nods, and she watches Felix go over to C’yra’s corner and sit on the edge of her cot, his hand grabbing hers without thinking.

“Hey,” Adora says as she reaches out and brushes a bit of Catra’s wild hair out of her face, “I can come with you.”

“No,” Catra says quickly, “They need She-Ra here.”

“I don’t want to leave you,” Adora whispers, and Catra feels the same.

Despite everything, despite having just survived the final battle and C’yra lying unconscious in an infirmary cot, all Catra really wants to do is forget responsibilities and find somewhere quiet where her and Adora can just be together.

But they can’t.

“Tonight, okay?” Catra says, “It’ll just be you and me tonight.”

Adora nods and starts to walk from cot to cot, asking healers what they need from her.

Catra watches her for a few minutes before leaving the tent, looking over her shoulder to check on C’yra one last time.

~*~

Catra and Adora don’t get their night alone like Catra promised. Adora spends hours in the healers’ tent as She-Ra, trying her hardest to save everyone and moving on when she can’t, the weight of each one sitting heavily.

Catra finds herself in front of Angella and Castaspella, arguing a case for the Horde soldiers stolen as children and forced into Hordak’s ranks with no other choice. She talks about her own experiences growing up, how she didn’t even know what her species was called, that she had a family and an entire people outside of the Horde cadets that she never knew about.

“Most of them had no choice,” Catra explains, Scorpia and Entrapta behind her as support, “Their people were either completely eradicated or they were taken as leverage, and none of them got the same chance to escape or defect like we did.”

“Some of them honestly believe in the Horde’s ideals,” Castaspella says, looking weary of the three previous-Horde soldiers stood right in front of her.

“Most of them don’t. They just didn’t have anywhere else to go.”

After hours of back and forth, it’s decided that every Horde soldier will be given the chance to reject the Horde’s ideals, and any who don’t will be jailed and given a trial before the Sorcerer’s Council in Mystacor. All ranking officers wouldn’t be given a choice.

By the time Catra and Adora were done with their responsibilities for the night, they just found a bed wherever they could and fell asleep apart, their last thought of each other.

~*~

News from the Rebellion’s kingdoms start to arrive in the morning, and for the most part it’s good.

For the most part, the Rebellion’s forces were able to fight off the small encampments, and there were very few injured and even fewer deaths.

Catra reads the letter from Pisica on her own off in the Whispering Woods between talking to Horde soldiers and discussing trial proceedings for the ones who still remained loyal to Hordak. It’s the first break she’s gotten all day, her first moments alone since before the battle started, and she enjoys the silence and hopes that no one comes to find her for a bit.

_“There were minimal casualties,”_ Pisica writes, _“We underestimated the soldiers stationed outside of Half Moon, though. They were stronger than we assumed, but there wasn’t much damage to Half Moon.”_

Pisica sounds formal and direct in her writing, so different from what Catra is used to, and she sees why Pisica’s writing seems so off.

At the bottom of the letter is a list of those who lost their lives protecting Half Moon.

Alonzo’s name is at the top of the list.

“No,” she repeats over and over again, the words really sinking in, and Catra can’t stop the tears from spilling over.

She cries for Alonzo and the other Magicats who died in battle.

She cries because C’yra still hasn’t woken up.

She cries because the stress of the final battle and everything leading up to it finally dissolves.

She cries because it’s over and they won, but it doesn’t feel like it.

Catra hears the sound of feet against soft earth, and she curls up in a ball and hopes that whoever it is doesn’t find her.

Gentle hands wrap around Catra’s wrists and pull her hands from her face, and through her tears she sees Adora with deep bags under her eyes and She-Ra’s sword nowhere to be found.

“He’s dead,” Catra chokes out, “Alonzo’s dead.” _It’s all my fault,_ Catra doesn’t say out loud, _He asked me to train him, to help him get better, and it wasn’t enough to keep him safe._

Catra thinks of Alonzo sitting across from her on Beast Island insisting that she teach him. She thinks of his determination, his want to best Catra, even though he never did.

Catra’s tears turn into choking sobs, and Adora holds her close, not saying anything because she knows nothing will really help. All the words and reassurances in the world wouldn’t bring Alonzo back.

It feels like hours before Catra’s sobs quiet down to soft tears, and Adora picks her up and cradles Catra against her as she walks back to the castle.

They fall asleep together, Adora holding Catra in the safety of Adora’s room, and every time either one of them wakes up from a nightmare, the other is there to hold them close and help them fall back asleep.

~*~

The next day, Catra and the other Magicats return to Half Moon to be present for the funerals of those who fell in battle.

In C'yra and Felix's absence, Catra says the Magicat blessing for the dead, the words coming out almost mechanically, and she feels numb as the family members of the fallen light each pyre, the fires burning strong and bright.

~*~

Catra splits her time between Half Moon and Bright Moon in the week following the battle, and she keeps herself as busy as possible to keep her mind off of the fact that C’yra still hasn’t woken up.

Finding work isn’t an issue. When she’s at Half Moon, her time is spent filling in for C’yra, helping Magicats with their concerns and assisting in the few repairs that need to get done, and when she’s at Bright Moon, she’s in meetings and sitting among the Princess Alliance through the trials of Horde officers and loyal soldiers. 

The few moments she gets with Adora are fleeting, both of them drowning under their responsibilities, and each one gets shorter and shorter as the week goes on.

She’s just leaving Adora’s room after their only moments together all day when a healer runs up to her.

“Princess Catra,” he says, his words coming out in puffs, “It’s Queen C’yra. She’s awake.” 

She shoves past him without thinking, instantly forgetting the meeting she was supposed to go to.

The infirmary is clear on the other side of the castle, and she’s breathing hard as she comes up to the door and pushes it open, narrowly missing one of the healers on the other side. She mumbles a quick apology and rushes to the back corner where she knows C'yra is.

Felix smiles at her as she runs up, and he puts his hands up to stop her. “Calm down, sweetheart,” he says, voice soft and comforting.

“The healer told me—”

“Hey, kitten.”

C’yra’s voice is weak, and when Catra turns to her, C’yra’s eyes are drooping closed, but she has the ghost of a smile on her lips.

“Come here,” C’yra reaches her hand out to Catra, and Catra doesn’t hesitate. She takes her mother’s hand and sits on the edge of the bed.

“How are you feeling?” Catra asks.

“Horrible,” C’yra breathes out and winces.

“But alive,” Catra says, “Which means I can tell you how dumb it was that you didn’t stay at Half Moon.”

C’yra rolls her eyes, and even with her slower movements and sluggishness, Catra can see the fondness in C’yra’s watered-down sarcasm. “So I see that you’re the mother now.”

“I’m glad almost dying didn’t take away your sense of humor,” Catra rolls her eyes too, but beneath it, she’s so unbelievably relieved. C’yra is here, awake and making jokes, and Catra almost lost her, almost lost all of this.

Felix sits on the other side of the bed and runs his fingers through C’yra hair. “I don't know why I didn't expect this."

They talk for a bit, Catra updating C’yra on the things she’s missed around Half Moon and the aftermath of the final battle, straying away from anything too heavy for all of their sakes, and Catra starts to feel part of the heaviness on her heart start to lift.

Everything isn’t okay, not really. The Magicats who lost their lives still weigh heavily on Catra, and her nightmares have been getting worse, older ones of Shadow Weaver mingling with new ones of Adora or C'yra dying and the Rebellion losing the war. Catra is exhausted and all of her responsibilities are overwhelming, but one thing, no matter how small, is finally right.

C'yra is awake. She's still injured, still healing, but she'll be okay.

Catra didn’t lose anything else.

A healer comes by, and he has a sleeping drought for C’yra to take.

“But she just woke up,” Catra says quickly, fear spiking.

“Don’t worry,” the healer smiles in a way that he thinks in comforting, but it doesn't work on Catra, “Sleeping helps her body to heal.”

Catra doesn’t believe him, even though she doesn’t have a reason to think he’s lying. 

_I’m just scared,_ Catra thinks, trying her best to logic through her panic, _I know I’m scared, but what if something goes wrong? What if sleeping isn’t good? What if, what if, what if?_

“Kitten,” C’yra barely nudges Catra, “It’s going to be fine.”

“I’m almost lost you,” Catra whispers, “I just got you back, and then I saw you go down during the battle, and I just—”

Catra doesn’t know how to put all of these feeling, the sadness and emptiness, the overwhelming need to be a good princess _and_ queen for the Magicats right now, the expectations put on her and the fear that she won’t measure up.

“I’m alive, Catra,” C’yra says, her voice sounding stronger than it has since she woke up, “I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere, okay?”

Felix reaches over and gently ruffles Catra’s hair. “Neither of us are going anywhere.”

Their words are comforting enough that Catra takes a deep breath and nods, the spiraling thought not fully going away but just enough that they don't overwhelm her.

She stays in the infirmary until C’yra falls asleep again and Felix kindly kicks her out, telling her that C’yra wouldn’t want her to just wait around, so Catra begrudgingly leaves and climbs her way up to the castle’s roof to be alone for just a moment before someone needs her again.

~*~

_She’s in the final battle again, Catra fighting her way through soldiers and bots alike, and she doesn’t know where she’s trying to go. She can’t see anyone else from the Rebellion, no princesses or Bright Moon guards or Magicats anywhere near her, but she knows she needs to keep fighting. She needs to get through._

_So, she fights. She strikes down soldiers with ease and uses her claws to tear through bots, and she keeps going and going until she sees where she’s going._

_It’s Hordak standing tall, a satisfied smile on his face, and he has Adora, a sword held to her throat._

_“Hello, Force Captain,” Hordak says, “Have you come to see my victory?”_

_“Let her go,” Catra growls, ready to lunge._

_“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Hordak says with a small tsk, and the blade presses closer to Adora’s throat, small beads of blood building up around the steel._

_“Catra,” Adora says, the eyes wide and filled with fear, “Catra, please.”_

_“I’ll save you,” Catra tells her desperately._

_“I wouldn’t make promises you can’t keep,” Hordak says, and in one quick movement, the sword slices through Adora and she slumps at Hordak’s feet._

“No!”

Catra shoots forward, her breathing sporadic and heavy and her claws digging into her palms, drawing blood.

She feels arms snake around her waist, and she tries to fight, but she hears a soft, “It’s me,” whispered against her ears, and she stops.

“You’re safe,” Adora whispers, “You’re not there anymore.” The arms around Catra’s waist tighten, and usually it would be enough to calm Catra down, but it doesn’t work. She just keeps seeing Adora dead, Adora dying, Adora captured.

“Open your eyes, Catra.”

Catra doesn’t even realize her eyes are closed, and when she opens them, her eyes take a few moments to adjust.

They’re in Adora’s room in Bright Moon, the three moons casting just enough light into the room that Catra’s heightened sight can make out the shapes perfectly. There’s the waterfall in the corner making soft dripping sounds and the table beside Adora’s bed where She-Ra’s sword sits in grabbing distance, and it’s not a battlefield filled with enemies.

_I’m not there,_ Catra chants silently to herself, _Adora’s safe. I’m safe. We won. I’m not there. I’m not there. I’m not there._

“Hey,” Catra feels Adora press a few kisses against her shoulder, “I’m here.”

Catra relaxes against Adora, her eyes drooping closed.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Adora asks, so soft and gentle.

Catra nods no.

“Okay,” one of Adora’s hands slips under Catra’s shirt to run along the short fur of Catra’s stomach, “What do you need?”

“This,” Catra says, her voice barely there, “Just this.”

Adora kisses the back of Catra’s neck, “Okay.”

Catra isn’t sure how long they stay like that, but as she starts to drift off, Adora moves them a bit, and Catra falls back asleep against Adora’s chest, her heartbeat loud against Catra’s ear.

~*~

Hordak’s trial is the last, and it goes by quickly.

His numerous crimes are listed, and it doesn’t take long for the Sorcerers’ Council to reach a verdict.

Adora grabs Catra’s hand and squeezes hard, and Catra squeezes back equally as nervous.

Lifetime imprisonment in a solitary cell.

As a pair of Bright Moon guards take Hordak from the room, Catra watches him go and thinks about how powerful Hordak used to seem. She admired him and needed his validation so desperately that she was willing to do anything to get it, even if it meant destroying herself and everyone around her.

But now? Hordak seems small, stripped of all of his armor and strength and power, and Catra feels satisfied as she catches his eye as he passes by the Princess Alliance, smirking at him to say, _I don’t need your validation anymore._

The doors slam behind him, and Adora and Catra let out the breath they were holding in and smile at each other.

“Lifetime imprisonment,” Adora says happily as the rest of the Alliance starts to get up from their chairs.

“Solitary too,” Catra feels giddy for the first time since Adora stole that skiff and invited her along, “We’ll never have to see him again.”

“The Horde is gone,” Adora breathes out, and Catra hears the other things underneath those words.

_No one will ever be raised like we were ever again._

_Children won’t be taken from their families._

_No one will be forced to fight in a war their taught to believe is just._

“Yeah,” Catra whispers, “It is.”

~*~

Catra walks into C’yra’s office and immediately glares at her mother, who is currently trying to pull herself from her wheelchair in order to reach a book.

“I will tie you down to that chair.”

C’yra growls, low and frustrated, and she sinks back into the chair. “I can’t reach anything in this damn thing.”

Catra comes over and reaches up just so to grab the book that C’yra was trying to get. “I’ll get Entrapta to make you something.”

“Can she make me something that’ll make my body heal itself faster?” C’yra asks, taking the book from Catra and wheeling herself back over to her desk.

Catra sits across from her, “It’s only been two months.”

“I know,” C’yra sighs, “I know this will take time, but I’m a warrior, kitten. I really don't like having to ask someone for help for everything I want to do.”

“You’ve gotten pretty good at rolling yourself around, though.”

C’yra glares, but Catra just smirks in return.

“You think you’re very funny, kitten.”

“Oh, I don’t think, I know,” Catra says and leans back in her seat, a cocky smirk in place.

C’yra rolls her eyes but smiles fondly, and then asks, “Did you need something, or did Felix send you here to check on me when I kicked him out?”

“Can’t I just want to come spend time with my mother?”

“Not willingly.”

Catra laughs, “I’m glad you maintain your humor in this trying time.”

“It’s all I have.”

“That’s dramatic.”

C’yra smiles, and Catra smiles back, happy to see C'yra more like herself than she has been since she was released from the infirmary and brought back to Half Moon.

“Anything exciting happening in Bright Moon?” C’yra asks, and Catra shrugs.

“Not really,” Catra leans her head back and looks up at the ceiling, “It’s just meeting after meeting, and when we’re not in a meeting, I don’t even get to see anyone. Adora’s even busier than me, and Scorpia is out helping the previous Horde soldiers adjust to their non-soldier life. Even Entrapta is out in the Fright Zone trying to clear the smog and reverse the environmental effects.”

“Post-war is a busy time.”

“I know. I just,” Catra sighs, “I miss everyone.”

Because Catra’s looking up at the ceiling, she doesn’t see C’yra’s smirk.

“Especially your girlfriend.”

Catra scoffs, “Shut up.”

“I’m not wrong.”

“Okay,” Catra stands up quickly, “I didn't come here to be teased. I think it’s Dad’s turn to watch you again.”

“I knew you two had a schedule,” C'yra jokingly accused.

“He planned it.”

“It’s probably color-coded.”

“Of course it is.”

C’yra nods her head with a smile, and Catra smiles too.

“I’m happy you’re getting better,” Catra says genuinely after a few moments, and C’yra’s smile turns soft and warm.

“It’ll take a bit more than Hordak’s second-rate army to keep me down.”

Catra goes to the door, and right before she reaches for the handle, she turns and says, “I love you, Mom.”

C’yra’s eyes go wide, and even Catra is a little surprised at herself. She’s never really told anyone she loved them, and she tries to stay away from the feeling as much as possible, because she always thought that love would make her weak and vulnerable, but she’s starting to learn that there’s nothing wrong with loving and being loved in return, and that the people she loves deserve to hear that she loves them.

“I love you too, kitten,” C’yra says softly, her eyes looking watery, and shoos Catra’s out of her office before Catra can see happy tears falling.

Catra wipes a few of her own away as she starts to make her way to the training grounds.

~*~

_Six months after the Second Battle of Bright Moon_

Catra wakes up to the sun filtering into her room, the light warming her fur, and she feels nails scratch gently just behind her ear, the action drawing out low purrs.

“Morning,” Adora says softly and presses a few kisses against Catra’s forehead.

Catra nuzzles against Adora’s neck and purrs louder, and she feels Adora giggle.

“That tickles,” Adora breathes, and Catra does it just to hear Adora’s cute giggles again before pressing lazy kisses up Adora’s throat.

“Morning,” Catra murmurs against Adora’s jaw, and Adora’s fingers thread through Catra’s hair and bring her up so that they’re kissing soft and slow, because for the first time in six months, they have time to go slow.

There are no meetings to attend, no crises to resolve, no urgent responsibilities begging their attention.

For the first time in six months, the Princess of Half Moon and She-Ra get to just be Catra and Adora, alone in the peaceful quiet of Catra’s room in Half Moon with no worries of being disturbed.

“Hey, Catra?” Adora asks softly against Catra’s lips.

“Yeah?”

“I want to stay here with you all day.”

Catra smiles, “I think that can be arranged.”

And then they’re kissing again, soft and slow turning to heated and passionate, everything else forgotten.

Tomorrow they will have to return to reality, because there’s still people to help and things to repair. The world isn’t completely fixed, even if it is on its way.

But today, it’s just the two of them, happy and content and alone together.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, is anyone mad that I killed my own OC? Because I'm a bit upset at myself, but anyway, even if we only saw Alonzo for small bits and pieces.
> 
> Anyway.
> 
> I really hope you guys liked it, and never fear, this universe isn't completely though. If any of you guys want to see anything from this universe, just let me know. I'm a little too attached to say goodbye just yet. If you have anything, or if you just want to pop in and say hi, comments work just fine, or if Tumblr is more your speed, you can find me at hellofromthe-otter-slide.
> 
> Until the next fic (hopefully)!


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